Who is responsible for vulnerable pupils? The attitudes of teacher candidates in Serbia and Slovenia

In the ongoing trend towards inclusive education, initial teacher education programmes must ensure that prospective teachers are prepared to teach all pupils effectively. The study presented in this paper aimed to explore the attitudes of teacher candidates in Serbia and Slovenia towards responsibility for the teaching and learning of vulnerable pupils in mainstream elementary schools. Using a quantitative approach, the study sought to elicit teacher candidates’ views about division of responsibility for the academic achievement and additional support of vulnerable pupils and their views on the factors that most affect learning difficulties in those pupils. Our findings indicate that teacher candidates’ feelings of responsibility are unlikely to help when instructing vulnerable pupils. The implications of these findings are discussed and we suggest several ways to improve teacher education programmes to promote inclusive education based on the concept of quality education for all.     

Teachers as change agents in making teaching inclusive in some selected rural schools of Limpopo Province,South Africa: implications for teacher education

ABSTRACT

This paper reports on teachers as change agents to implement inclusive education in some rural secondary schools in South Africa. The study followed a qualitative case study research methodology. Eight teachers were recruited to form part of the study through a purposive sampling strategy. Data were collected through interviews, observations and document analysis. The study found that: (a) teachers were resilient in the face of lack of resources to implement inclusive education, (b) teachers did their best despite lack of capacity to implement inclusive education, (c) teachers showed the willingness to effect change, and (d) when they collaborated with others, they achieved more. These findings have at least four implications for teacher education: One that institutions should train teachers to survive with meagre resources. Two, professional development initiatives should be planned to capacitate teachers on inclusive education. Three, teacher education institutions should develop programmes that include models of teacher agency such as the one displayed by these teachers. Four, teacher education should develop programmes that teach teachers how to collaborate with parents and other stakeholders to make inclusive education possible.     

Context as mediator: teaching residents’ opportunity and learning in high-need urban schools

This article presents findings from an exploratory empirical study of teaching residents’ opportunities and learning within the overlapping contexts of English as a Second Language (ESL)/special education classrooms and high-need urban schools. Utilizing documentation from the first year of a teacher residency program, our findings illustrate the central role that mentor teachers play in determining the kinds of opportunities afforded to teaching residents and the ways in which factors unique to these clinical contexts shape learning. Implications center on the preparation of mentor teachers and the work of teacher education programs in the US.     

Developing inclusive practice: teacher perceptions of opportunities and constraints in the Republic of Ireland

There has been a significant policy shift from parallel systems of special and mainstream education in the Republic of Ireland towards provision underpinned by enabling legislation with a presumption for inclusion. The role of teachers in establishing inclusive learning environments is critical and it is generally accepted that inclusive practice relies to a large extent on teacher knowledge, skills, understanding, capacity and attitudes. This exploratory study aimed to gather information on teachers' attitudes about inclusion, and perceived constraints in creating inclusive learning environments. A range of schools from urban, semi-urban, provincial and rural backgrounds were included and data were collected using semi-structured interviews (n?=?24) including all principals, class teachers and support staff in the participating schools. Teachers recognised the challenge of responding appropriately to diversity within schools and are generally supportive of the principle of inclusion. However, there are clear concerns around their individual capacity and the capacity of their schools to develop inclusive learning environments. A positive school ethos was a significant factor in ensuring inclusive practice. International research indicates that the complex mix of positive teacher beliefs combined with fears and perceived inadequacies is quite common in the evolution of practice towards inclusive learning environments.     

'My attitude,my responsibility‘ Investigating the attitudes and intentions of pre-service teachers toward inclusive education between teacher preparation cohorts in Melbourne and Pretoria

This study explored the attitudes and intentions of pre-service teachers towards inclusive education, across two teacher preparation institutions in Australia and South Africa. There were multiple aims to the study: among these was a need to explore the impact of contextual factors on pre-service teacher attitudes towards inclusive education, and to investigate factors that may impact on their intention to include students with additional learning needs into regular classrooms. The study utilised a published survey as a measuring instrument. One-way analyses of variance were used to establish whether statistically significant relationships existed between specific demographic variables and respondent attitudes towards inclusive education. This paper presents the findings of this investigation.     

融合教育背景下我国高等师范院校特殊教育师资培养模式改革的思考

提高随班就读教育质量,高质量的师资是关键。通过分析国际融合教育发展对教师培养体系改革的影响,发现普通教育和特殊教育知识和技能的融合成为当今教师教育改革的必然趋势。在此基础上,就我国特殊教育师资培养模式进行讨论,并对建立符合我国特殊教育发展实际的高等师范院校特殊教育师资培养体系进行思考与探索,培养特殊教育骨干人才、融合教育专门人才以及随班就读普及型人才是当前特殊教育师资培养模式变革的主要方向。     

(Re)turning to practice in teacher education: embodied knowledge in learning to teach

Contemporary research conversations about the utility of practice theories to professional education support the reconceptualisation of pre-service teacher education in ways that provide strong preparation for continued professional learning. This paper reports on an empirical inquiry that introduced a theoretically informed practice-based intervention in a pre-service teacher education course in order to judge the utility of such an approach for student learning. Innovations within the Study of Teaching programme illustrate the bringing together of pedagogies of observation, pedagogies of enactment, and pedagogies of reflection toward an integrated theory of teacher education that focuses on the teaching body as a central site for research and for the building of preparatory knowledge and skill for ongoing learning. Data was collected from pre-service teachers involved in the programme through video and audio recordings along with individual and focus group interviews, questionnaires and student reflection on video recordings. These were analyzed within an emerging theoretical framework derived from both practice-theoretical literature and international empirical research into core practices. Initial findings suggest that a focus on practice within pre-service teacher education may enhance traditional understandings of ‘practice-based’ approaches that situate the study of practice outside of the university, in school settings. These findings have implications for the ongoing reform of teacher education in increasingly regulated contexts framed in terms of teacher quality.     

Inclusive education policy: what the leadership of Canadian teacher associations has to say about it

In inclusive education research, rarely are teacher associations a topic of investigation despite their critical role in its implementation and efficacy. A study was conducted as part of the Canadian Disability Policy Alliance using a learning collaborative methodology that explored the extent to which Canadian provincial/territorial teacher association leadership personnel were aware of inclusive education legislation and policy. Using a semi-structured protocol, 14 participants were interviewed, representing 12 Canadian jurisdictions. Results indicated a complex theme with three linked issues: leadership participants stated that their teacher membership was well aware of inclusive education policy, that their membership generally endorsed it, contingent upon adequate resourcing. The particularities of this theme, awareness-endorsement-resources, are contextualised throughout the results, and the implications are raised in the discussion.     

Educational reform in Japan towards inclusion: are we training teachers for success?

Within a tradition of a dual regular and special education system in Japan, the Government is promoting education reform that encourages an inclusive approach to education. This research investigates whether teachers are being trained for successful inclusion in Japan by reviewing the perceptions of all pre-service teachers in one university regarding their readiness for becoming inclusive practitioners. A move towards an inclusive approach to education in Japan is being promoted through collaboration and support between teachers trained in regular and special education. Thus, different perceptions of pre-service teachers preparing to work either in elementary schools or in special schools are a particular focus of this research. Discussion considers the need for better teacher preparation due to the very low understandings of inclusion and Japanese pre-service teachers’ perceived lack of skills, knowledge, experience, or training for an inclusive approach.     

Collaborative Partnership: Developing Pre-service Teachers as Inclusive Practitioners to Support Students with Disabilities

Since the introduction of anti-discrimination legislation including Australian Disability Discrimination Act, 1992 and the Disability Standards of Education, 2005, there is an increasing demand on all schools to cater effectively for more students with disabilities within an inclusive school community context. This investigation explored a proactive partnership model designed to equip pre-service teachers with deeper role understandings in teaching students with disabilities. This collaborative model involved sustained professional experiences in schools on four mornings each week over 38 weeks, offered in conjunction with their final-year teacher education studies in Diversity and Inclusive Education. A unique emphasis of this qualitative study was a focus on identifying conducive real-life experiences and ideal teacher qualities for undertaking challenging inclusive practitioner roles. Findings highlighted the perspectives of school leaders, special education mentors and pre-service teachers in improving inclusive learning outcomes for all students while developing an effective collaborative partnership model for teacher education.     

Perceived efficacy of teachers in Macao and their alacrity to engage with inclusive education

ABSTRACT

This paper reports findings of a mixed methods study examining private school teachers’ perceptions of efficacy in dealing with the challenges presented by inclusive education in Macao. This is highly pertinent after the Government invited consultation to propose changes to amendments of the Decree Law of 1996 concerning the education of students with Special Education Needs (SEN) which will likely see private schools being required to accept these students in the future. Within the context of teacher preparedness for inclusive education, the study found that a number of teachers felt that they were not at all prepared to teach students with SEN. Whilst some teachers suggested that they lacked skills and knowledge in teaching in inclusive classrooms, some felt overwhelmed with the challenges. The teachers proposed that they would need to know how to provide instructional adaptations and modifications to support students with SEN. Implications for continuous development of teacher training and education are discussed within the context of improving teacher efficacy and how private school teachers could better respond to the challenges of inclusive education in Macao.     

The initial training of teachers to teach children with special educational needs: A national survey of English Post Graduate Certificate of Education programmes

With moves towards inclusive education, there are demands for developments in initial teacher education as regards special needs and inclusive education. This paper outlines initial training in England within an international context. It then reports findings of a recent national survey of Programme directors and subject tutors of Post Graduate Certificate in Education programmes (PGCE) for primary and secondary teachers about the initial training provision in this aspect teaching. The main findings are about varied practices across placement schools, the commitment to the training partnership, coordination problems across the partnership and organising teaching experience of pupils with SEN. The implications of the study are also discussed in national and international terms.     

Pre-service teacher training in health and well-being in England: the state of the nation

This paper presents findings from a survey of pre-service teacher training institutions in England with regard to the provision of health and well-being education. It examines factors affecting the inclusion of health and well-being, and explores educational implications in light of the changing landscape of pre-service teacher education in England. Provision of health and well-being education is noticeably variable across institutions, and many course leaders are unclear about the coverage in their partner schools. Course leaders regard health and well-being as an important part of the curriculum, but the focus is usually on generic health-related themes such as child protection and behaviour management, which address Government priorities, rather than on specific topics such as education about diet, drugs, alcohol, smoking, sex and relationships and physical activity. The paper argues that these aspects should be addressed for pre-service teachers to have an increased sense of self-efficacy and become capable health promoters.     

Encouraging Pattern Language Development in a Pre-service Inclusive Education Course: A Comparative Study

This study investigated the ability of students in a pre-service teacher education course to deploy pattern language (or professional lexicon) related to specific inclusive teaching strategies. The study sought to determine whether there were differential effects of two approaches to learning, one based on a field-based placement (Applied Experience) and the other employing an embedded course design approach (Embedded Design). The results indicate that pattern language frequency and sophistication increased significantly over time. Results also indicate that pre-service teachers’ use and sophistication of pattern language differed according to the structure of the university learning approach employed. The findings are discussed within the context of Embedded Design theory and the role of Applied Experience in pre-service inclusive education, as well as within the context of building more rigorous teacher preparation programmes.     

Initial teacher education and trauma and violence informed care in the classroom: Preliminary results from an online teacher education course

A trauma-and-violence-informed-care (TVIC) system within an educational setting provides a framework of practice that enables schools to become safe and inclusive places for some of the most vulnerable students. Initial teacher education may provide the opportunity to prepare teachers to create classrooms and learning experiences that are safe, equitable, and meet students' needs. A mandatory mental health literacy course for second year teacher candidates in a Bachelor of Education program (n = 287) at a large Canadian university introduced TVIC concepts. A case study approach was used to illustrate both the challenges that students exposed to trauma and/or violence can experience, as well as strategies and knowledge that teachers can use to support these students. This program evaluation used a repeated measures design to survey both attitudes toward trauma informed care for teachers and self-efficacy for teaching using inclusive practices before and after the course. A significant effect of time on both measures revealed an increase in both participants' attitudes toward TVIC and their self-efficacy in using inclusive teaching practices. These findings provide support for the inclusion of these important topics for all teacher candidates. Implications for practice and policy are discussed.     

Exploring inclusive pedagogical practices in Hong Kong primary EFL classrooms

Social diversity is now commonplace in many communities in today’s globalised world. This diversity can be seen in any classroom of learners, and international studies have shown the complex ways in which disabilities, race, ethnicity, gender and social class can determine a child’s opportunity to succeed or fail in the education system. In Hong Kong, like in many educational contexts around the world, teachers are grappling with increasing diversity amongst their students, including teaching students with special educational needs (SEN) and non-Chinese speaking students (NCS) living in Hong Kong. This paper examines how three primary TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) teachers are constructing identities as inclusive practitioners as they grapple with enacting the inclusive education policy recently introduced into Hong Kong schools. The data are drawn from a small-scale collaborative reflective inquiry for teacher professional development. Drawing upon a sociocultural and critical framing of identity theory, we trace the three teachers’ identity construction as EFL teachers and inclusive education practitioners. We view the role of discourse, self-positioning and social context as key processes in teacher identity formation. Implications for furthering the development of inclusive education in EFL classrooms are offered.     

Inclusion in school: a policy,ideology or lived experience? Similar findings in diverse school cultures

This article summarises three case studies examining the implementation of inclusive practices, which evidence the exclusionary pressures acting in school settings that put the needs, rights and entitlements of vulnerable children and young people at risk. It examines how three very culturally different secondary schools in England interpreted inclusive policies and illuminates the various constraints to the implementation of inclusive practices as experienced by senior leaders, teachers, parents and pupils in these schools. Conceptual unpreparedness towards inclusion versus integration, knowledge and false conceptualisations of special educational needs and difficulties associated with differentiation and time limitations were the main barriers presented. The implications for initial and professional teacher education are posited; it is suggested that inclusion can work by removing the diagnostic paradigm associated with special educational needs and by creating a framework for teachers' lifelong learning focusing on a social justice oriented pedagogy that will empower teachers conceptually and practically.     

Inclusive education complexly defined for teacher preparation: the significance and uses of error

Research in the implementation of inclusive education in international contexts shows that progress in the Global South appears to lag behind nations in the North. In this paper, I investigate this phenomenon not by associating it with regional cultural and socioeconomic resource limitations, but by reconsidering the assumptions within inclusive education scholarship itself. Drawing on the theory of disability as complex embodiment [Siebers, T. (2008). Disability Theory. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press], I examine the sufficiency of the social model of disability as a foundational basis for teacher preparation for inclusive education in any sociocultural context. I argue for a post-positivist realist theorising of teacher preparation for inclusive education that, through an understanding of error, can imbricate the diversity of historically specific material contexts around the world. To illustrate the affordances of this theory, I examine two dilemmas in a Southern and Northern context, respectively, and generate implications that have transnational significance for inclusive education.     

Preparing Preservice Teachers for Life in Schools: The Role of Doctoral Education

ABSTRACT

Physical education teachers face considerable sociopolitical challenges that can impede quality instruction and complicate recruitment into the profession. Physical education teacher education faculty members may not be prepared to address these challenges during their doctoral education. Accordingly, the purpose of the paper was to utilize the lessons learned from occupational socialization research to propose competencies that can be integrated into doctoral education to help future faculty members integrate sociopolitical learning into physical education teacher education. These include: (a) understanding socialization literature and the implications for teacher education, (b) helping doctoral students understand their own prior socialization experiences, (c) recruiting highly qualified preservice teachers, (d) helping preservice teachers question their subjective theories, (e) developing and coordinating field experiences, and (f) preparing preservice teachers for the sociopolitical realities of schools. These competencies align with the proposed addition of a new standard for initial teacher education that addresses sociopolitical learning.     

Professional development and teacher aides in inclusive education contexts: where to from here?

During the past 10 years in Australia teacher aides have been employed in mainstream schools as support personnel in special education intervention programmes, and their numbers are increasing. At the same time workplace reform in relation to inclusive education is impacting on their employment and deployment in schools to support students with disabilities and learning difficulties. In Queensland, teacher aides have been offered formal career paths, with increased pay scales, based on the recognition and continuing attainment of qualifications or credentials. However, there is increasing recognition in the educational research community that professional development for any change, and especially the complex changes in culture needed for inclusive education, is about developing and managing a collaborative process of change through reflection on, learning about, and sharing meanings and understandings about effective support of all students, in ways that value the diversities and celebrate the differences of the perspectives of the whole school community. How can we move the process of professional development for teacher aides forward? The experiences and knowledge that teacher aides already can have further inform this process of change through professional development.